A browser-native path from Chromebook to design career

Figma is partnering with Google for Education to put Figma and FigJam directly on Chromebooks, the most widely used personal computing device in U.S. schools. Through the initiative, school districts can deploy and manage Figma Organization licenses for free from the Google Admin Console, giving tens of millions of students access to industry-standard design tools on their school-owned devices. Districts can apply to join the beta starting this summer.

Education has been part of Figma's mission since its founding, but the company says access remains a bottleneck. Most design software is installed on school-owned desktops, which typically limits students to scheduled lab sessions. Running Figma and FigJam on Chromebooks removes that constraint: students can brainstorm, collaborate, and design on their personal school devices whenever they have them.

The push comes as demand for digital collaboration skills grows beyond design-specific roles. Data cited by Figma notes design-centric companies outperform peers by a 2:1 margin, making fluency in these tools relevant across disciplines. Figma co-founder and CEO Dylan Field discussed the partnership, his own path into design, and what schools still need to get right.

Why Chromebooks were always part of the plan

"I've been obsessed with Chromebooks since they first came out," Field says. "The idea of a laptop that's cloud-connected and accessible—without being cost prohibitive so that it can be adopted by kids across the world—was pioneering. From day one, it was a goal to make sure Figma worked on Chromebooks."

Early feedback from teachers using the tools in classrooms points to engagement gains rather than just skill acquisition. Students who had no prior design exposure are now considering design programs after graduation, and many take on self-directed projects in Figma at home. Teachers also report using FigJam for icebreakers and collaborative exercises, making it a hub for classroom interaction rather than a standalone design utility.

Free tools as a lever for equity

Field's own introduction to design came through internships at Flipboard, first as an engineering intern and later as a design intern. The cost of creative software at the time shaped his thinking when starting Figma with co-founder Evan Wallace.

"Most students don't have money to spend on expensive software. So when we decided to start Figma, we knew it needed to be free," Field says. "From our own experience, we intuitively understood how important it would be to get tools and software in front of students, and to make it so they have access to opportunities."

Field frames the stakes in broader terms: the alternative to accessible design education is a world where only students from well-funded programs or privileged backgrounds can pursue careers in design and software. "We either can live in a world where people with fancy degrees have access to opportunities to do more work in design and in software, or we can live in a world where everyone has access to those opportunities," he says. "Figma is dedicated to the latter."

Beyond access: what actually teaches design

Field argues that tool access alone isn't enough. Drawing on his own education at Technology High School in California, he emphasizes project-based learning as the pedagogical model that builds durable design skills. His school's curriculum bundled science with engineering, requiring students to support scientific concepts with hands-on engineering projects.

"Oftentimes, we went through what I now consider to be a design process," Field recalls. "We'd explore wide, then, after we diverged, we converged, picked a direction, and executed on it."

Despite that preparation, Field says the word "design" intimidated him for years because he wasn't sure what it meant professionally. It took working alongside designers before he felt comfortable recognizing his own experience as design practice. He wants today's students to bypass that uncertainty. "I want them to have access to all facets of design—not just interface design, but also design thinking, creative problem solving, and collaborative workflows," he says. "I hope that Figma and FigJam will be an approachable entry point to the world of design."

A beta and a broader pattern

The Chromebook partnership is one piece of a longer-term push Figma has made into education. The company sees the pandemic as a turning point that accelerated the shift from physical to digital across every domain, raising the urgency for design literacy in K-12 curricula before students reach college or the workforce.

Schools interested in participating can apply for the beta through Figma's Chromebooks page.